Pocket-knife.



No. 656,092. Patented Aug. [4, I900.

J. H. CABLES.

POCKET KNIFE.

(Application filed Nov. 29, 1899.)

(No Model.)

WITNESSES INVENTOH m W Y vafl A TTORNE VS.

Tu: nonms PETERS ca. FHOTO LIYHO.. wAsmNoroN, u. c.

UNITED STATE PATENT OFFICE.

JAMES H. CABLES, on THOMASTON, CONNECTICUT.

POCKET-KNIFE.

sPEorFIcATIoN forming m of Letters Patent No. 656,092, dated August 14, 1900.

Application filed November 29, 1899- erlal No. 788,713. (No model.)

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that 1, JAMES H. CABLES, a citizen of the United States, and a resident of Thomaston, in the county of Litchfield and State of Connecticut, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Pocket- Knives, of which the following is a full, clear, and exact description.

This invention is a pocket=knife embodying a knife-blade, a fork, and a spoon, thus making an instrument which maybe readily carried in the pocket and used by campaigners when eating in camp. I

This specification is the disclosure of one form of my invention, whilethe claims define the actual scope of the same.

Reference is to be had tothe accompanying drawings, forming a part of this specification, in which similar characters of reference indi- Cate corresponding parts in all the figures.

Figure 1 is a side view of the knife with the fork extended. 7 Fig. 2 is an edge view with.

all the parts in closed position. Fig. 3 is a sectional side elevation on the line 3 3 in Fig. 2. Fig. 4 is an inside face view of the forksection with the spoon removed. Fig. 5 is a sectional side elevation on the line 5 5 in Fig. 2. Fig. 6 is afragmentary detail illustrating the action of the knife-blade on its spring, which is also made to serve as a lock for holding the two sections of the device together; andFig. 7 is a cross-section on the line 7 7 in Fig. 3, the section being taken through the entire article and showing the two sections of the knife connected to the blade in open position.

The fork-section is formed of a wooden or other handle-plate 8, to the inner face of which is rigidly fastened a metallic plate 9. A sec 0nd metallic plate forms part of the forksection and is rigidly connected therewith by means of pins 11, 12, 14, and 15, as shown in Fig. 5. Fastened between the plates 9 and 10 and held by the pin 12 is a spring 16 of the fork-section. The pin 14 bears against the spring 16, as shown best in Fig. 5, so as to give the spring the necessary stiffness.

The fork-section tapers slightly andhas in its small end the fork 17, the tang 18 of which is pivoted on the pin 11 and arranged to work against the adjacent end of the spring 16, during which operation the pin 14, bearing plate 26.

againstthe spring 16, gives the spring the rigidity necessary to the effective operation of the fork. The fork closes into the position shown in Fig. 5, or it may be extended, as shown in Figs. 1 and 4. In the other end of the fork-section the spoon is mounted on the pin 15. The spoon consists of a bowl19, with a shank comprising a run 20, extending practically perpendicular to the upper edge of the spoon, and a run 21, extending approximately at right angles to the run 20. The run 21 of the shank is provided with an inwardly and longitudinally curved slot 22,

forming at its outer end a shoulder 23 on the run 21 of the shank of the spoon. The plate 9 and the handle-plate 8 are each slotted adjacent to the pin to form an opening 24, through which the run of the shank of the spoon may pass. The spoon having its shank thus connected with the pin 15 may be thrown .to the open position, (shown in Fig.5,) Whereface of which is rigidly fastened a metallic A second metallic plate 27 is rigidly joinedto the plates 25 and 26 by means of pins 31, 28, and 29. (Shown best in Fig. 3.) A spring 30 is held between the plates 26 and 27 by means of the pins 31 and 28. The blade 32 has its shank 33 pivotally mounted on the pin 29, so as to bear against the free end of the spring 30. This spring holds the blade in the well-known manner, so that the blade may be opened and closed at will.

The blade and fork sections are removably connected with each other, so that when connected the plates 10 and 27 lie snugly against each other and so that when disconnected the blade and fork may be used independently as separate instruments. This connection is effected by means of two headed pins 34 and 35, secured upon the plate 10, which are adapted, respectively, to project through orifices 36 and 37 formed in the plate 27. The orifice 36 is round and of sufiicient size to permit the head of the pin 34 to pass through it, and the orifice 37 is provided with a round portion for the passage of the head of the pin 35 and with a slotted extension, in which the shank of said pin may be passed, as indicated in Fig. 3. The disposition of the orifice 3a is such that when the spring 30 is in its normal position (which position it occupies either when the blade is open or closed) the spring will lie over a portion of the opening 34; but when the blade 32 is moved to a midway position, such as that indicated in Fig. 6, the spring 30 will be forced outward away from the opening 36. By these means it is possible to connect and disconnect the two sections when the blade 32 is in intermediate position. To connect the two sections, the pin 35 is moved into the round portion of the opening 37 and then pushed endwise, so as to be locked in the position shown in Fig. 3 and so that the pin 34 may pass through the opening 36. Now upon either closing or opening the blade 32, which, in other words, means throwing it from the position shown in Fig. 6, the spring 30 will return and will engage the head of the pin 34 and force the pin upward, as in Fig. 3, to the position which said figure shows. This efii'ectively locks the two sections. The sections may be disconnected by folding the blade 32 to the position shown in Fig. 6, lifting the pin 3i out of the opening 36, and then sliding the sections relatively to each other, so as to disconnect the pin 35 from the walls of the opening 37. It should be understood that the parts are constructed with slight resiliency, so as to permit the pin 34: to enter and be removed from the opening 36 while the pin 35 is still engaged with the opening 37. The spoon is removable, as may be understood, so that the fork-section may be used either as afork or as aspoon, according to the preference of the user. I thus provide a pocketknife which may be conveniently carried on the person and used as a knife whenever de= sired, and which in addition to this may be manipulated to form a knife, fork and spoon for use in camp.

Having thus described my invention, I claim as new and desire to secure by Letters Patent- 1. The combination of two removably-connected sections, one section having a headed pin, and the other section having an orifice for said headed pin, a spring mounted on said orificed section and engaging the headed pin to push the same into locked position, and an instrument mounted on the section having the spring and engaging the spring to throw the spring out of engagement with the pin.

2. The combination of two sections having means for removably connecting them, a spring mounted on one of the sections to lock said means, and an instrument connected with one of the sections to engage the spring and actuate the same as the said instrument moves.

3. The combination of two sections, one of which is provided with two orifices, and the other of which is provided with two headed pins respectively adapted to enter the orifices, a spring mounted on the section having the orifices and capable of engaging one of the pins to cause the same to be locked with said section, and an instrument mounted on said section and engaging and actu ated by the spring, the instrument serving to move the spring.

4. The combination of two tool-carrying sections having means for removably scouring them together, and a lock device on one of said sections, the lock device working with said means for holding the sections secure, and being released by a movement of one of the tools.

JAMES H. CABLES. Witnesses:

ISAAC ()VVENS, Jr., JNo. M. BITTER. 

